Selective thread feeding mechanism for knitting machines



5 3, 1939. R. ANKE 2,142,168

. I 4 SELECTIVE THREAD FEEDING MECHANISM FOR KNITTING MACHINES FiledOct. 27, 1933 7 Sheets-Sheet 1 "11* ii u i? i i law IN VEN TOR.

Jan. 3, 1939-. 2,142g168 SELECTIVE THREAD FEEDING MECHANISM FOR KNITTINGMACHINES Filed Oct. 27, 1933 7 Sheet s-Sheet 2"Illlllllllllllllflllllllllll 5 "Ifllillllfllllllllllllllll m INVENTOR.

8 wife R. ANKE HINES Jan, 3,- 1939.

v I SELECTIVE THREAD FEEDING MECHANISM FOR' KNITTING MAC Filed Oct. 27,1933 7 Sheets Sheet 3 INVENTOR:

TORN.

R. ANKE Jan. 3 1939.

SELECTIVE THREAD FEEDING MECHANISM FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed Oct 27,1953 7 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTOR." Y Z hflwija ATTO Jan. 3,. 1939. R. ANKESELECTIVE THREAD FEEDING MECHKNISM FOR KNITTING MACHINES v Filed 061:.27, 1933 7 Sheets-Sheet 5 7 INVENTOR: BY 31mph my,

5 I Z l ATTORN Jan. 3, 1939. I R. ANKE 2,142,168

SELECTIVE THREAD FEEDING MECHANISM FOR KNITTING MACHINES Filed Oct. 27,1953 7 Shegts-Sheet IN V EN TOR.

BY V f ATTOR --R. ANKE 2,142,168

SELECTIVE THREAD FEEDING MECHANISM FOR KNITTING -MACHINES Jari, s, 1939.

Fil ed Oct. 27, 1953 7 sheets-sheet '7 INVENTOR: dye, BY 5 7 ATTORNEY.

66. TEXTiLES. KNiTTiiiG.

Patented Jan. 3, 1939 UNITED STATES SELECTIVE THREAD FEEDING MECHANISMFOR KNITTING MACHINES Rudolph Anke, West Reading, Pa., assignor toTextile Machine Works, Wyomissing, Pa., a corporation of PennsylvaniaApplication October 27, 1933, Serial No. 695,397

4 Claims.

My invention relates to knitting machines, provided with one or moreyarn carrier control stations, for selectively actuating in preselectedorder yarn carriers feeding separate yarns respectively so as to formseparate thread loop formations in a knitted fabric during itsproduction; this application being a continuation-in-part of myapplication Serial No. 566,989 filed October 5, 1931.

One object of my invention is to provide novel mechanism in a knittingmachine for automatically connecting with and disconnecting fromactuating means, in preselected order, certain yarn carriers which laythe yarn to be knitted, and which carriers are provided with a desiredselection of separate yarns of either the same or differ-' ent color,gauge, or other characteristic dependent upon the separate yarn pattern,or effect, to be attained in the loop formation and resultant knittedfabric.

Another object is to provide a novel attachment for a knitting machinefor automatically controlling yarn carriers in the foregoing manner,which attachment is simple in construction and operation, and which doesnot unduly complicate the knitting machine structure, and which mayreadily be added to existing installations.

With these objects in view, I have illustrated several embodiments of myinvention in connection with a straight knitting machine of the fullfashioned type, and have provided the usual friction box on the frictionrod with a yarn carrier rod engaging, or movement transmitting member,for example a slide, movable or shiftable from engaging relation withone carrier rod directly to engaging relation with another by means ofsuitable mechanism, such as a cam controlled rocker arm directly andpositively operable by a cam, or other contact wheel'structure, when acam contact member is determinedly positioned for engagement with thecam by pattern controlled means in properly timed relationship with theother knitting machine elements.

In one embodiment of the invention, the shiftable slide or movementtransmitting member is adapted to selectively connect either of two yarncarrier rods to the friction box as determined by a single controlstation which is suitably located, as at one side of a knitting section.

In another embodiment, the shiftable slide or movement transmittingmember is adapted to selectively connect at least three yarn carrierrods to the friction rod as determined by either one or a plurality ofcontrol stations which are suitably located, along a knitting section.

Another feature of my invention resides in providing means for movingthe friction box slide, or carrier engaging member, so that it travelscontinuously in one direction from a position of engagement with onecarrier rod to a position of engagement with another carrier rod, inother words, from one actuating position directly to a second actuatingposition; and I accomplish this irrespective of whether the threadcarrier dogs which the friction box slide engages are located at one ora plurality of control stations.

With these and other objects in mind, my invention also includes thenovel elements, features of construction, and arrangement of parts incooperative relationship as exemplified by the several practicalembodiments hereinafter specifical- 1y described and shown by theaccompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a plan view, partly broken away, of the friction rod andcarrier rods of a full fashioned knitting machine and automatic con-'-trol mechanism therefor in accordance with one form of my invention;

Figure 2 is a front elevation, partly broken away, of portions of themechanism shown in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a fragmentary side elevation, partly in section, of thefriction box and shiftable slide for selectively connecting carrierrodsto the friction rod and the cam controlled mechanism for operating theslide;

Figure 4 is a fragmentary sectional view illustrating the manner ofguiding and holding the slide in the friction box;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary view showing details of the hand operatedlever seen in Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a plan view, partly broken away, of the friction rod andcarrier rods showing a modified form of automatic control mechanismtherefor;

Figure 7 diagrammatically illustrates the movements of the yarn carrierswhen employing the control device of Figure 6;

Figure 8 is a front elevation, partly broken away, of portions of themechanism shown in Figure 6;

Figures 9, 10 and 11 diagrammatically illustrate various operatingpositions of certain of the cam elements embodied in the mechanism ofFigure 6;

Figure 12 is a fragmentary side elevation, partly in section, of the camcontrolled mechanism of Figure 6 for operating the friction box slide;

Figure 13 is a view, partly in section, showing details of the leverstructure for actuating the friction box slide of Figure 12;

Figure 14 is a diagrammatic plan view of certain parts involved inlaying three yarns alternately in succeeding courses of the fabricduring the knitting thereof;

Figure 15 is an enlarged sectional view, taken along the line l5|5 ofFigure 14, showing details of the yarn carriers;

Figure 16 diagrammatically illustrates the movements of the yarncarriers in accordance with another method of operation of the automaticcontrol mechanism of Figure 6; and

Figure 17 is a fragmentary view of the pattern chain structure of Figure6, showing an arrangement of buttons adapted to actuate the carrier rodsin the manner illustrated in Figure 16.

As mentioned above, the inventions of the present application form acontinuation-in-part of those disclosed in my referred to pendingapplication; the present subject matter being correlated and coextensivetherewith.

In view of the interrelation of inventions involved, the disclosureherein necessarily includes the subject matter of the earlierapplication; and this phase of the invention will be described first inorder to facilitate an understanding of the entire inventive concept.

Referring to Figures 1 to 5 of the drawings, the numerals I8 and IIdesignate two of a plurality of reciprocable thread-carrier rods adaptedto lay yarn along the needles of a knitting machine for the formation ofloops by the sinkers and dividers thereof. These carrier rods arereciprocated when connected to a friction box I2 carried by areciprocable friction rod l3. In accordance with my invention, a slideI4 is guided in the friction box I2 for movement transversely of thecarrier rods and is provided with a handle I5. Slide I4 has a nose I6adapted to engage notches or recesses I! in dogs I8 and I9 secured tothe thread carrier rods. At its under side the slide I4 is provided, asshown in Figure 4, with a series of notches 28 engageable by a springpressed ball 2I, or other detent, to maintain the slide in the positionto which it has been moved in friction box I2 for connecting a carrierrod to the friction rod I3.

The slide I4 is automatically moved in friction box I2 to selectivelyconnect either of the thread carrier rods I8 or II to the friction rodI3 in the following manner: Near its rearward end slide I4 has a slot 22normally receiving an arm 23 secured to a rock shaft 24 journaled inbrackets 25. An arm 26 fixed to shaft 24 is adjustably secured to a rod2'! having collars 29 and 29. engageable by the end of the arm 28 of abell crank secured to a stub shaft 38 mounted in a bracket 3| on theframe of the machine. The other arm 32 of the bell crank is connected toa lever 33 held by a spring 34 in operative engagement with a stub shaft35. Shaft 35 is journaled in a forked arm 36 extending from a collar 31on loop regulating shaft 38. A spring 48 connected to bell crank arm 28and a shaft 4I acts to maintain a roller 42 mounted on stub shaft 35between the bifurcations of arm 36 in contact with a cam 43 or an idlercam 44 carried by a cam shaft 45.

A lug 4'I on collar 31 supports a stud 48 on which a lever 58 ispivotally mounted. At its upper end lever 58 engages a sleeve secured toa roller 5I slidably mounted on shaft 35. A spring 52 connected tocollar 31 and the lower arm of lever 58 normally acts on lever 58 tomaintain roller 5| out of the plane of a cam 53 fixed to cam shaft 45.Cam 53 has secured to one side edge thereof a plate 54 a portion ofwhich projects beyond the periphery of the cam. Plate 54 is adapted tocooperate with roller 5| for a purpose which will be describedhereafter.

Lever 50 is connected by a rod 55 to an arm 56 pivotally mounted on ashaft 51 carried by a bracket 58. Ann 56 has a lug 68 positioned to beengaged by buttons 6I on a pattern chain 62 passing over a sprocket 63.Sprocket 63 is intermittently operated by being given a definiteincrement of movement for each rotation of cam shaft 45, this incrementbeing sufficient for example to advance chain 62 one or more'links.

Normally the nose I6 of slide I4 is received in the notch ll of the dogI8 on carrier rod I8 so that the latter is connected to friction rod I3through slide I4 and friction box I2. When friction rod I3 isreciprocated in well known manner the carrier rod I8 is moved thereby tolay yarn along the needles. As the friction rod and carrier rod move tothe left (Figure 2) the slot 22 in slide I4 mounted in friction box I2moves from engagement with arm 23 and on return movement of the rods tothe right the slide is returned to normal position with the arm 23seated in slot 22. As these movements of the friction and carrier rodstake place, the end of arm 28 moves idly between the collars 29 and 29on rod 21, arm 28 being moved in one direction by spring 48 and in theopposite direction by the eccentric portion of cam 43 as the latterrotates in engagement with roller 42. Thus, arm 28 does not causemovement of rod 21 unless arm 23 is displaced from its adjustedposition. In such event the operation of arm 28 acts to properlyposition arm 23 so that it may enter the slot 22 in slide I4 when thelatter is returned with friction box I2 to normal position. Thus, aconnection is reestablished between slide I4 and arm 22 so that theslide may be moved in the friction box to establish connection with thecarrier rod II if desired.

When another yarn, either of the same or of a different color, gauge orother characteristic with respect to that laid by carrier rod I8, is tobe laid in a succeeding course or courses to obtain any desired separateyarn .pattern or effect, a button BI is mounted on pattern chain 62 insuch position that the intermittent operation thereof brings the buttonbeneath the lug 68 of arm 56 at the proper time for inserting the yarnsupplied by carrier rod II. Button 6| on being moved beneath lug 68 actsto pivot arm 56 on shaft 51 and through the rod 55 to turn lever 58 onstud 48 against the action of spring 52. This turning of lever 58results in moving roller 5I on shaft 35 into the plane of cam 53. Atthis time the eccentric portion of cam 43 acts on roller 42 and arm 36to maintain roller 5I slightly away from cam 53 to permit such axialmovement of roller 5|. As cam 53 rotates the periphery thereof, whichhas portions extending beyond the periphery of cams 43 and 44, engagesroller 5I and acts to rock arm 36 clockwise and move roller 42 fromcontact with cam 43. The rocking of arm 36 causes counterclockwiserotation of arm 28 which being in engagement with collar 29 acts throughrod 2'! to turn shaft 24 and rock arm 23 counterclockwise. Arm 23 movesslide I4 in friction box I2 transversely of the carrier rods carryingthe nose of slide I4 from the notch in the dog on carrier rod I8 intothe notch of dog IS on carrier rod II.

Thus, the connection of carrier rod I8 to friction box I2 and frictionrod I3 is interrupted and carrier rod I I is connected to the frictionbox for reciprocation by friction rod I3. Consequently, on reciprocationof the friction rod in well known manner the next two courses laid alongthe needles will be of the yarn supplied by carrier rod II. During thenormal knitting operations the reciprocation of friction rod l3 movesthe slide I4 away from arm 23 temporarily interrupting the connectionbetween the slide and the arm.. Slide I4 is held in its advancedposition in friction box I2 by ball 2| engaging a notch 20.

Near the end of a revolution of cam 53 with shaft 45 the contour of thecam permits spring 40 to act to move the end of bell crank 28 away fromcollar 29 towards collar 29 but not into engagement therewith. Since rod21 is not operated the arm 23 remains in its advanced position forentering seat 22 when slide I4 is returned. As the low spot of cam 53 ispresented to roller 5| the high spot or eccentric portion of cam 43engages roller 42 rocking arm 36 to move roller 5| away from cam 53.Spring 52 tends to act on lever 56 and move roller 5| from the plane ofcam 53 but is resisted by the connection of lever 50 to arm 56 which isheld against movement by the button 6| seated beneath lug 60. Chain 62may be provided with one or more buttons 6|, for controlling theconnection of carrier rod II to friction rod I3, depending on the ratioof movement of chain 62 to that of cam shaft 45. In any event a button,or buttons, on chain 62 acts on arm 56 and its connection to lever 50 tomaintain roller 5| in the path of cam 53 for at least two revolutions ofcam shaft 45; that is, for the cycle of operation in which carrier rod II reciprocates to lay two courses, one in each direction, during whichslide I4 moves away from arm 23 and returns to connected relationtherewith.

In the second revolution of cam shaft 45, cam 53 again acts on roller 5|and arm 36 to move roller 42 from contact with cam 43 and again movesarm 28 to engagement with collar 29 on rod 21 but does not causemovement of rod 21 on arm 23. As cam 53 completes its second revolutionthe reengagement of cam 43 with roller 42 moves roller 5| away from cam53 so that spring 52 may pivot lever 50 on stud 48 moving roller 5| onstub shaft 35 from the plane of cam 53. Spring 52 may perform thisfunction inasmuch as the controlling button 6| on chain 62 has beenmoved from engagement with lug 60 on arm 56.

Arm 23 is still in its advanced position and the slide I4 has returnedto its normal position in which arm 23 is seated in the slot 22 of slideI4 reconnecting the latter to arm 23. As the low spot of cam 43 ridesbeneath roller 42 spring 40 acts to move bell crank arm 28 intoengagement with collar 29' moving rod 21 to rock shaft 24. As shaft 24is rocked the arm 23 is turned clockwise and being again connected toslide I4 moves the latter in friction box I2 to withdraw nose I6 fromengagement in the notch of the dog I9 on carrier rod II into engagementwith the notch of the dog I8 on carrier rod I0. Thus, carrier rod II isdisconnected from friction rod I3 and carrier rod I 0 is again connectedthereto for laying the yarn supplied by rod I0.

Thereafter the carrier rod I0 is reciprocated in the knitting operationsand cam 43 and spring 40 cause movement of the end of bell crank arm 28between collars 29 and 29 without actuating rod 21 until another button,or other buttons, 6| on chain 62 advance to control the shifting ofslide I4, as described above. By properly spacing the buttons 6| onchain 62, any desired separate yarn pattern or effect may be obtained,for example, a number of buttons may be mounted in succession on thechain to produce a plurality of successive pairs of courses of the yarnsupplied by carrier rod II, or the buttons may be omitted to producesuccessive pairs of courses of the yarn supplied by carrier rod III, orthe buttons may be spaced from each other thereby to alternate therespective yarns fed by the carrier rods III and II in predeterminedorder in preselected courses of the fabric.

In the knitting of full fashioned hosiery it is customary to performnarrowing operations at certain times. This is customarily effected byshifting cam shaft 45 axially to move the usual loop regulating cams outof operating position and to move narrowing cams into operatingposition. In the event that cam shaft 45 is shifted axially to the right(Figures 1 and 2) for a narrowing operation at the time a button onchain 62 has caused roller 5| to be moved into the plane of cam 53. theplate 54 on cam 53 acts to maintain roller 5| alined with cam 53 as thecam moves to the right with shaft 45. Plate 54 is secured to cam 53 insuch position as not to interfere with the axial shifting of roller 5|when lever 50 is operated. When shaft 45 is shifted axially cam 43 movesfrom alinement with roller 42 and idler cam 44 moves into alinementtherewith. Cam 53 also moves with shaft 45, and plate 54 being securedto the cam, the portion of this plate projecting radially beyond theperiphery of the cam, after axial movement of the roller 5| by lever 50,will be positioned to engage the side of roller 5| and to move thelatter along with cam 53 as cam shaft 45 moves to the right. After thisaction, continued rotation of the cam shaft 45 disengages plate 54 fromthe side of roller 5|, and the latter, being held in engagement with theperiphery of the cam by the relatively powerful spring 40, is thus heldin alignment with the cam against the action of the smaller spring 52.The movement of slide I4 effected by cam 53 during the narrowingoperation connects carrier rod II to friction rod I3 for reciprocationthereby on termination of the narrowing operation. When the narrowingoperation is terminated shaft 45 is shifted to the left (Figures 1 and2) the roller 5| on lever 50 is positioned in the plane of cam 53, theroller being moved with cam 53 by spring 52 as shaft 45 shifts axially.Thus, cam 53 is effective to cause connection of carrier rod I I tofriction box I2 for laying separate yarns of similar or contrastingcolor or gauge in succeeding courses respectively of the fabric asdescribed above when friction rod I3 is reciprocated after the narrowingoperation.

Lever 33 has a notch 64 normally in engagement with stub shaft 35 forconnecting levers 33 and 36. A slot 65 in lever 33 connects notch 64with a second notch 66 also adapted to engage stub shaft 35. Lever 33has a handle 61 by which it may be raised to disengage notch 64 fromstub shaft 35 and moved rearwardly toengage the notch 66 with stub shaft35. Such movement of lever 33 turns bell crank arm 32 clockwise causinga stop 68 associated therewith to engage a set screw 69 on bracket 3|for limiting the rearward movement of lever 33. Bell crank arm 28 isalso turned clockwise positioning its end adjacent collar 29 so thatbell crank arm 28 on operation by cams 43, 53 or spring 40 moves idlybetween collars 29 and 29 without moving connecting rod 21. As a resultarm 23 and slide I4 remain positioned to connect a desired carrier rod,such as I0, to friction rod I3 and are not operated during rotation ofcam shaft 45 to connect another carrier rod, such as II, to the frictionrod.

It is to be understood that slide l4 may be employed in conjunction withvarious pairs of carrier rods other than rods l and I I, since theinvention resides in the novel mechanism disclosed for automaticallyactuating selected yarn carriers in predetermined order in succeedingcourses of the fabric, the mechanism functioning in the manner describedirrespective of the type or purpose of the respective yarns fed thereby.For example, slide |4 may normally connect the carrier rod to the leftof rod Hi to' friction rod I3 and on movement, as described above, mayconnect the carrier rod to the left of rod ii to friction rod i3. Thismay be effected by adjusting the connoctlon of arm 26 to rod 21 so thatshaft 24 and arm 23 are positioned to normally locate the nose i6 in thenotch of the dog carried by the carrier rod to the left of rod It. Onoperation of rod 21 by cam 53 the movement of slide i4 would thenconnect the carrier rod to the leftof rod ii to friction rod l3. Similaradjustments of shaft 24 and arm 23 may be made by moving rod 21rotatively to arm 28 and relocating the collars 29 and 29'correspondingly. The extent of movement of slide 14 may be varied bypositioning the collar 29 to provide for an idle movement of arm 28before it engages the collar for moving rod 21 and arm 23. In thismanner the spacing of the carrier rods between which the nose i6 ofslide i4 moves may be varied.

In the foregoing arrangement it is to be particularly noted that mydevice differs from prior art devices in that during the shifting orcarrier changing operation the friction box slide or carrier engagingmember travels continuously in one direction from a position ofengagement with one carrier rod to a position of engagement with anothercarrier rod, i. e., it moves from one actuating position directly to asecond actuating position, and is not required to be moved to a neutralposition upon disengagement from a carrier rod and then returned to aposition of engagement with another selected rod, as in prior artdevices, so that there is no lost motion present during the shiftingoperation,

Attention is directed to the fact that the device above describedconstitutes a selective carrier actuating device provided with onecarrier engaging, or control, station and embodying certain novelelements and arrangement of parts in cooperative relationship.

Realizing that such a device having a single carrier control station isnot entirely adequate to serve certain purposes. particularly where amore univers'al selective control of the carriers is desirable, I havealso made provision to extend its usefulness by utilizing this samemechanism and adding thereto a. second carrier control station therebyadapting it for various other purposes requiring one or more carrierselecting stations.

To accomplish this I provide, as more particularly illustrated inFigures 6 to 15, another embodiment of the invention in which thefriction box slide l4a is adapted to selectively connect at least threethread carrier rods to the friction rod,

the slide being actuable at either one or two control stations, shown inthis instance at opposite sides of the knitting section. The variousparts and mechanisms of this embodiment corresponding to those of theembodiment illustrated in Figures 1 to 5 are identified by likereference numerals with the superscript a added thereto.

Referring particularly to Figures 6, 12 and 13, the arm 23a is slidablymounted on rock shaft 24a which has a spline H thereon coacting with akeyway I I a (Figure 13) in the arm 23a, whereby rotary or oscillatorymovements of the rock shaft will impart corresponding movements to thearm' and thus variably position the friction box slide |4a controlledthereby. The nose I6a of the slide is adapted to selectively engagenotches in dogs 2a, 3a or 5a on thread carrier rods 2, 3 and 5,respectively, so that any one of these rods may be connected at will tothe friction rod l3a for laying the yarn fed by such rod in any desiredcourse or courses. The friction box i2a. has two arms 12, 12 extendingtherefrom which embrace the arm 23a and cause the latter to slide alongthe splined shaft in unison with the friction box as it is reciprocatedacross the knitting field. As shown in Figure 13, the arms I2 haveopenings 13 therein to provide clearance for the usual friction boxguide rod 14a. The rock shaft 24a is oscillatable to three positions toselectively connect the carrier rods 2, 3 and 5 to the friction rod forreciprocation thereby, the rock shaft being actuated to its variousoperating positions by the lever system 26a36a generally in the mannerhereinbefore set forth in describing the mechanism of Figures 1 to 5,except that the contours of the cams 43 and 53 shown in these figuresare changed to vary the throw of the friction box slide.

In order that the lever system and hence the slide Ila may be actuatedto three operating positions, the roller 42a, Figure 6, has extendingtherefrom a flanged sleeve I5 engageable by a tongue 16 secured to andmovable with lever 11 pivotally mounted on a stud 18 extending fromlever 36a, the last named lever being freely rotatable on shaft 38a butprevented from longitudinal movement thereon by split collars 90 and 90aclamped to shaft 38a. The lower end of the lever 71 is connected bymeans of a. rod 19 to an arm 8! copivotally mounted at 51a with thelever 56a, the arm 8| having a lug 82 adapted to contact with a secondrow of buttons 83 mounted on the pattern chain 62a. The lever 11 isnormally biased by means of a spring 80 in the position shown, andtherefore when no button in the row of buttons 83 is in position tocontact with lug 82, the roller 42a is in contact with the round cam 44aand the position of the lever system 26a--36a, rock shaft 24a and arm23a will cause nose I611 of the slide l4a to engage a dog on one of thethread carrier rods, for example No. 2, and thereby connect said yarncarrier with the friction rod for reciprocation thereby. When a buttonin the row of buttons 83 on the pattern chain is operatively positionedbeneath lug 82, however, the lever 11 will be rotated (in a clockwisedirection as viewed in Figure 8) so that at the proper time the roller42a will shift to the right, as viewed in Figures 6 and 8, into theplane of cam 84 on cam shaft 45a for camming engagement therewith asshown in Figure 10. Cam 84 is higher than the round cam 44a and actuatesthe lever system 26a36a so as to rotate shaft 24a and arm 23a to causethe nose 5a of the friction box slide to disengage from lug 2a andengage lug 3a thereby to connect thread carrier 3 with the friction rod.If desired, the collar 29a of said lever system 26a--36a may be adjustedto the position indicated by dot-and-dash lines in Figure 12 thereby toprovide a positive connection between rod 21a and arm 28a of the system.

When a button in the row of buttons Gla on the pattern chain is movedbeneath lug 60a on arm 56a, this causes the roller 5la to be shiftedinto the plane of a cam 85 for camming engage- 66. TEXTILES. AN

iiiiiiij.

ment therewith as shown in Figure 9. This cam is larger than either cama or cam 84 so that cam 85 is controlling and shifts the lever systemZia-36am rotate shaft 240. and arm 23a. to cause the nose 16a of thefriction box slide to disengage from carrier 2 or carrier 3. as the casemay be, and engage the dog 51: of carrier rod to connect the latter withthe friction rod for laying the yarn fed by this carrier. The buttons 6la and 83 may be mounted on the pattern chain 'in any desired spacedrelation and thereby enable the three carriers to be actuated in anydesired predetermined order in succeeding courses of the fabric duringthe knitting thereof.

Referring particularly to Figures 6 and 8, movement of the operatingrods 55a and 19 to the left, as viewed in' the figures, is effected(against the tension of springs 86 and 8! respectively positioned on therods by means of collars 99, 99a and I00, IUOa clamped to the rods) whenthe arms 56a and 8| associated therewith are rotated by means of buttonsGla or 83 beneath the lugs 60a and 82, respectively. This movement ofthe operating rods results in compression of the spring 86 or 81, as thecase may be, the action of the spring causing the roller 420 or 5la withwhich it is associated to bear against the side of cam 84 or 85, so thatwhen the shifting point :17, Figure 12, of the cams has reached theproper position the roller will be automatically Shifted by the actionof its spring at the proper time into engagement with the cam 84 or 85.With this arrangement the timing of the cams B4 and 85 may be changed tocause the roller shifting operation and movement of the friction boxslide to take place at any desired point or points in the path of travelof the friction box so that the yarn fed by a selected carrier may belaid the full length of a course in the fabric or laid for a part of acourse only, as desired, the roller shifting mechanism per se comprisingthe subject matter of a separate application.

A stop comprising a threaded stud 88, Figure 12, is tapped into thefront rail 89a of the machine frame; the stud has a lock nut 9| forlocking the stud at any desired height relative to an abutment or stoparm 92 secured to and extending from the collar 31a of lever 36a forpreventing the roller 42a from dropping off the round cam 44a when camshaft 45a is longitudinally shifted by the chain motion mechanism to thenarrowing position, shown. in Figure 11. In accordance with the usualoperation of the pattern chain, a selecting movement of the levers 58aand 8| may occur during the narrowing operation which shifts a selectedfollower to the right as viewed in Fig. 11. Upon the cam shaft returningto a position for normal knitting, the selected follower yieldinglyengages the side of the corresponding cam, and thereafter automaticallyaligns itself with said cam when the portion at of said cam coincideswith said follower, as previously explained, For the sake of simplicityonly those parts of the chain motion mechanism necessary to anunderstanding of the invention are shown; the various other parts andtheir method of operating for shifting the cam shaft are well known inthe art and are shown and described in detail in the Reading FullFashioned Knitting Machine Catalogue (copyright 1929) published by theTextile Mach ne Works, Reading, Pennsylvania.

By staggering the buttons in the rows Bid and 83, as shown in Figure 6,the friction box slide may be disengaged from or engaged with anydesired carrier at either or both sides of the knitting section, thusproviding two control sta- Y tions, and therefore a single course of anyone of the yarns fed by the carriers may be produced without thenecessity of using an idle course motion to return the friction box tothe opposite side of the section to engage the next carrier.

Figures 7, 14 and 15 diagrammatically illustrate the operation of themechanism in knitting a stocking blank by utilizing three main yarncarriers for laying separate yarns in successive courses I to VII of thefabric. In course I, one of the thread carrier rods, for example No. 2carrier, is engaged by the friction box slide and is caused to traversethe knitting field from right to left and lay the yarn supplied by it toform a course of the fabric, while Nos. 3 and 5 carriers are waiting atthe right and left sides, respectively, of the knitting section. Afterthe loops of course I have been formed and before laying the yarn forthe next succeeding course If, the roller 5Ia is shifted, by means of abutton Ha on the pattern chain, into camming engagement with the cam 85,Figure 9, so that the friction box slide is disengaged from carrier No.2 and directly moved into engagement with carrier No. 5 in order thatthis carrier may lay the yarn from left to right in course II while Nos.2 and 3 carriers remain at opposite sides, respectively, of the knittingsection. After the loops of course II have been formed and before theyarn is laid for the next succeeding course III, the roller 42a isshifted, by means of a button 83 on the pattern chain, into cammingengagement with the cam 84, Figure 10, to thereby disconnect thefriction box slide from carrier 5 and directly move the same intoengagement with No. 3 carrier, thus causing this carrier to lay the yarnfrom right to left for the course III, Nos. 2 and 5 carriers remainingat opposite sides of the knitting section at this time. In thesucceeding courses IV, V and VI, the carrier rods are actuated in thesame order, each of the carriers travelling in a direction opposite thatin the preceding three courses in laying the yarn, and prior to layingthe yarn for course VII there has been a complete cycle of operation ofthe three carriers in the order stated.

Figures 14 and 15 illustrate one method of bringing the yarn carriers20, 3c and for laying the yarn across the needles 93 of the knittingsection shown so as to minimize the possibility of the yarns becomingentangled or broken during alternate reciprocations of the yarncarriers, although it will be understood that any other suitable methodof preventing entanglement or rupture of the yarns may be employed. Itis to be understood that the needle bar 94 is given the necessaryvertical and horizontal movements by the usual needle bar actuatingmechanism, and that the end stops 95 and 95a are of the usual typecontrolled by screw threaded spindles 96 and 96a at opposite ends of theknitting machine for determining the traverse a of the various threadcarrier bars (only three are employed to form the body yarn of thestocking fabric with the respective carriers 2, 3 and starting from asingle station, or from the same side of the knitting section. As shown,the yarn in the first two courses I and II is laid by No. 2 carrier; inthe next succeeding two courses III and IV the yarn is laid by No. 5carrier; and in the next succeeding two courses V and VI the yarn islaid by No. 3 carrier, this cycle of operation of the carriers beingrepeated throughout any desired length of the fabric.

It is to be understood that the friction box slide may be employed forengagement with any of the carrier rods, other than Nos. 2, 3 and 5, andin any desired order as determined by the pattern mechanism, forautomatically actuating selected yarn carriers in predetermined order insucceeding courses of the fabric, regardless of the type or purpose ofthe respective yarns fed thereby. As in the first form shown, thefriction box slide or carrier engaging member travels continuously inone direction, during the shifting or carrier changing operation, from aposition of engagement with one carrier rod directly to a position ofengagement with either of the other carrier rods, and therefore there isno lost motion present during the shifting operation.

It will also be noted that in the foregoing forms of the inventionillustrated in the drawings the friction box slide M or Ma is positionedand movable in a plane parallel to the plane of the bank of coactingthread carrier rods l0, l4 etc. or 2, 3, 5 etc. With this arrangementthe dogs l1, l9 and 2a, 3a, 5a, respectively, on the thread carrier rodswith which the slide engages may all be made alike so that one form andsize only is required for all carriers; since the dogs are relativelysmall and do not extend any considerable distance from the threadcarrier rods, substantially no leverage action is developed by reason ofthe height of the dogs and therefore no additional strain is imposedupon either the friction box slide or the dog engaged thereby.

Of course, the improvements specifically shown and described, by which Iobtain the above results, can be changed and modified in various Wayswithout departing from the scope of the invention herein disclosed andhereinafter claimed.

I claim: I

1. In a straight knitting machine, the combination with a plurality ofthread carrier rods respectively feeding separate yarns to the sameknitting section, a friction rod, a friction box on said rod having aslide movable transversely across the thread carrier rods for selectiveengagement therewith, and a rotatable cam shaft; of a rock shaft havingan arm slidably mounted thereon and rotatable therewith, said armengaging said friction box slide for controlling the position thereofrelative to the thread carrier rods, a plurality of cams rotating incorrespondence with said cam shaft, cam follower means for lower meansinto camming engagement withv said cams in predetermined order insucceeding courses, respectively, of the fabric being knitted.

2. In a knitting machine, a reciprocable movement imparting member, amovement transmitting means adapted to selectively engage said movementimparting member with any one of a plurality of yarn carriers, of meanseffecting.

said selective engagement including an element normally contacting amovable means for one position of selection of the movement transmittingmember, shiftable means for moving said element to a position ofactivity with another movable means for a second position of selectionof the movement transmitting member, and an additional shiftable elementadapted to be shifted into a position of activity with a third movablemeans and simultaneously render said other element inactive, for a thirdposition of selection of the movement transmitting member.

3. In a full fashioned stocking blank knitting machine, the combinationof a plurality of reciprocable yarn carriers, yarn carrier reciprocatingmeans, a unit for connecting the yarn car riers to said reciprocatingmeans for reciprocation thereby, a rotatable cam shaft axially shiftableto effect knitting in one position and narrowing in another position,means movable with and relative to said unit for selectively connectingone of said carriers to, and disconnecting another of the carriers from,the unit at either side of the knitting field to lay separate yarns inrecurrent sequence, and actuating means including an element bodilyreciprocably shiftable longitudinally of the machine independently ofsaid unit to effect transmission of an actuating impulse to saidselective connecting means, pattern control means, and means governed bysaid pattern control means and operative when the cam shaft is in eitherone of said positions for shifting said element into the positionrequired for said sequential operation when the cam shaft is in knittingposition, said actuating means and said last mentioned means arranged toprevent the transmission of an actuating impulse when said cam shaft isin narrowing position and to automatically bring said element intoimpulse transmitting position upon return of said cam shaft to knittingposition.

4. In a straight knitting machine the combination with a plurality ofthread carrier rods respectively feeding separate yarns to the sameknitting section, a friction box for reciprocating said carrier rods, amovement transmitting member on said friction box adapted to selectivelyengage said movement imparting member with any of said carrier rods, anda rotatable cam shaft axially shiftable to effect knitting in oneposition and narrowing in another position; of a device for causing saidmovement transmitting member to automatically engage and reciprocatesaid thread carrier rods in predetermined order in sequentiallysucceeding courses of the fabric during knitting thereof, said devicecomprising three cams on said cam shaft and cam follower means for saidcams connected with said movement transmitting member for positioningthe same relative to said carrier rods, said follower means comprising ashiftable spindle having two followers thereon one of which is axiallyfixed with respect to the spindle and the other of which is slidablewith respect to the spindle, said spindle and followers arranged toprovide three active positions of the cams and follower means when thecam shaft is in knitting position and to provide a neutral position ofthe cams and cam follower means when the cam shaft is in the narrowingposition. RUDOLPH ANKE.

